Want to build a career in finance but don’t know where to start?
Let me tell you what nobody told me early enough.
You don’t need to be born rich or attend an IVEY league school to build a career in finance.
But you need a strategy.
Here is what you need to focus on.
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Let me tell you something many people don't know about all of these Core i3, i5, i7 and i9.
Many people don't understand that each of them has its uniqueness.
You don't just say "I want Core i7" merely because it's Core i7. You need to consider what exactly you want to use the laptop for.
I'll deferentiate between all these cores.
But first of all....
What exactly are these things called cores?
Think of them as workers inside your laptop. Basically, they determine your laptop's level of performance.
1.🔹 Core i3 (Basic performance)
Good for ordinary activities like:
• Browsing the internet
• Microsoft Word/Excel
• Online classes
• Watching videos
• Emails and everyday tasks
If you're just using your laptop for student work and casual activities, then Core i3 is all you need.
2.🔹 Core i5 (Mid-range performance)
This one's good for:
• A certain level of multitasking
• Programming
• Office work
• Photo editing
• General professional use
• Some level of gaming
For many people, Core i5 is the sweet spot, especially if you want a balance between basic functions and a little bit of extra efficiency without having to break the bank. Students, programmers and office people can definitely go for this.
3.🔹 Core i7 (High performance)
Designed for more demanding work, and it's good for:
• Video editing
• Serious multitasking
• More demanding software
• Gaming
• Graphics/design work
• Professional workloads
This is a good deal for graphic designers, video editors, and people who might want to use some really demanding software.
4.🔹 Core i9 (Very high performance)
Generally a very high-end Core option, designed for people who need a lot of processing power, such as:
• Serious professional video editing
• 3D rendering
• High-end gaming
• Heavy professional workloads
Most ordinary users don't need an i9 at all, and that's probably why the highest you'll easily find people advertising in the Nigerian market is i7.
.....
Having said all that...
I must make something clear:
Checking the Core isn't enough.
You also need to check the generation and exact processor.
For example:
Core i5-8250U → 8th Gen
Core i7-1165G7 → 11th Gen
Core i5-1235U → 12th Gen
Core i7-13700H → 13th Gen
The letter at the end also matters:
The U, P, H, or HX at the end have what they mean. I'll make a separate post explaining them later.
Another thing worth remembering: always choose an SSD over an HDD.
Your laptop can have 16GB RAM, Core i7 and still be a very bad purchase.
Before buying a laptop, take not of these 10 things:
1.🔹Go for SSD instead of HDD.
SSD makes the laptop significantly faster when booting, opening apps and transferring files. It also doesn't make the spinning noise HDDs make.
You can check by pressing Ctrl + Shift + Esc → then Performance → then Disk.
2.🔹Having a high RAM isn't enough.
A laptop with 16GB RAM and a weak or old processor can still perform poorly. So it's important to check the processor.
3.🔹 Focus more on the generation of the processor rather than just “Core i5” or “Core i7.”
Never assume an i7 is automatically better than an i5. A newer-generation i5 can outperform an older-generation i7, depending on the specific processors.
When you check the model number for most Intel Core processors, the number immediately after the hyphen tells you the generation.
For example:
i7-6500U = 6th Gen
i5-8250U = 8th Gen
i7-1165G7 = 11th Gen
i5-1235U = 12th Gen
i7-13700H = 13th Gen
4.🔹Don't ignore battery health, especially when buying a used laptop.
To check on a Windows laptop, open Command Prompt and type: powercfg /batteryreport
This will generate a battery report showing the design capacity and full charge capacity. The bigger the gap, the more the battery has degraded.
5.🔹Check the screen quality, not just the size.
A 15.6-inch screen isn't automatically better than a 14-inch one. To confirm, go to Settings → System → Display → Advanced display to check the resolution and refresh rate.
6.🔹Check whether the RAM and SSD can be upgraded.
Some newer laptops have their RAM already soldered, meaning you may not be able to increase it later.
7.🔹Check the ports you need.
USB-A, USB-C, HDMI, SD card slot, headphone jack and other ports can make a difference depending on what you use the laptop for.
8.🔹For a used laptop, test everything.
Don't just open the laptop, see that it boots.
Test the keyboard, trackpad, speakers, microphone, webcam, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, charging port, USB ports, HDMI, hinges and screen.
Open a document and test every key. Play audio through the speakers. Connect to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Plug in a USB device and test the charger.
9.🔹Buy according to your needs.
For browsing, Microsoft Office, online classes and basic work, you don't necessarily need a high-end laptop.
For programming, heavy multitasking or professional software, you need a strong processor and sufficient RAM.
For video editing, 3D work and serious graphics work, you have to pay attention to the GPU, processor, RAM and display.
For gaming, don't focus on RAM alone. The dedicated GPU, processor, cooling system and display matter a lot.
Stay informed
And
Stay sharp! 🪒
They forget how it started for Ronaldo at Manchester United. He wasn't protected. He was hunted, even inside his own dressing room.
2005-2006. Ronaldo was 20.
At that time Ruud Van Nistelrooy was the star. 150 goals for United, but he was obsessed with beating Thierry Henry for the Golden Boot. He wanted every ball in the box, early, no tricks.
And there was this 20-year-old kid from Madeira doing stepovers in training. Doing elasticos. Holding the ball one second too long. Not crossing immediately.
Ruud hated it. He complained every day: "Cross the ball! Stop showing off!"
One day in training at Carrington, Ronaldo did a trick, lost the ball, Ruud snapped. He screamed at him in front of everyone and said: "Go cry to your daddy, Carlos Queiroz."
That was not banter. Ronaldo's real father, Dinis Aveiro, had just died months before from alcoholism. He was 20, alone in England, his father gone. And his own teammate tells him to go cry to his daddy.
Ronaldo broke down.
And who stood up? Rio Ferdinand.
Rio was one of the only defenders who understood him. He had seen Ronaldo cook Gary Neville, cook Ashley Cole in training, he knew this kid was special and just needed protection. When Ruud said that, Rio leapt in. Reports said they had to be physically separated. Rio grabbed Ruud and told him never to speak to the kid like that again.
That fight split the dressing room. Sir Alex had to choose: the 30-year-old finisher who wanted to be Henry, or the 20-year-old kid who would become history.
Ferguson chose Ronaldo. He sold Ruud to Real Madrid that summer.
If Rio didn't defend him that day, Ronaldo could have left. He could have gone back to Portugal broken. But one man protected him, and that loyalty is why Ronaldo still calls Rio his brother today.
If you are a corporate finance person and you have not explored either of these two books (in the comments section), are you sure you want me to take you seriously???
Goldmines, I am telling you.
For anyone who says “I know Excel” but then panics when someone gives them an actual spreadsheet 😂
Here’s a website with practical Excel challenges you can use to test and improve your skills.
Save and share with someone who needs this.
https://t.co/1myfpu2KMn
A finance enthusiast? Especially in the investment management world (asset management - including fund management, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, family offices; private equity; venture capital; and hedge funds)...
... I have this very beautiful Youtube channel for you: https://t.co/eBzXramht2
Spend some time there and you'd get tons of bars.
The person behind it is the Chief Investment Officer of one of the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world.
Check it out, and thank me later.🤞🤞
I just found a website with a FREE accounting course.
40+ hours of lessons + hundreds of practice questions.
If you’re studying accounting or preparing for ICAN, this could save you a lot of money on resources.
https://t.co/G9pl4ovUgK
If you are preparing for ICAN case study, I have a case study recommendation for you.
Out of the five professional level papers I wrote, case study was the one I was most scared of😂
This was the person I used for my case study preparation, and I can personally vouch for her.
I was able to write my case study once and pass, all thanks to her and myself too oo😂
So, if you are preparing for case study, you can check her out. She is really good!👇🏽